Help Choose “A Tale for One City”

Recreational reading is often neglected as the eyes grow weary with television viewing or surfing the Internet. In an effort to break this cycle, UTC has become the proud co-sponsor of a new reading program initiated by the City of Chattanooga called "A Tale for One City." Everyone is invited to participate.

One book will be chosen as this year's selection, and everyone in Chattanooga will be encouraged to read the book, then meet in groups throughout the community and talk about it. The program is a way of promoting literacy, and it brings people in the community together to find common threads that they share.

"I encourage everyone in the UTC family to participate now in the selection of the book, and again when the choice is announced. It is the kind of event that demonstrates the University’s commitment to literacy, to education, and to building a better community," according to Dr. John Friedl , UTC Provost.

Other cities throughout the country have engaged in this type of community-building project with considerable success, Friedl added.

A preliminary screening committee was formed to select five books, from which the final selection will be chosen by public vote. The five books are:

• All Over but the Shoutin', by Rick Bragg
• Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, by Ernest Gaines
• Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, by Fannie Flagg
• Tuesdays with Morrie, by Mitch Albom
• Walking Across Egypt, by Clyde Edgerton
  

Please visit http://www.lib.chattanooga.gov/ataleforonecity.htm to view the selections and cost of these books, and then send an e-mail to cast your ballot between now and November 20. Thank you for your participation!